Resentment & Forgiveness

Resentment is a useless pursuit. It does not help you, it does not help the situation, and it does not help the people you resent.
Resentment expands the damage that has been done and prolongs the pain that has been inflicted. And resentment often leads to new instances of hurtful behavior on the part of everyone involved.
The way to end the downward spiral of resentment is with forgiveness. Forgiveness frees you to move forward, unfettered by the burden of past wrongdoing.
Forgiveness does not mean that what happened was acceptable. Forgiveness simply enables you to completely, once and for all, let it go.
In every life, there are numerous and continuing opportunities for deep, abiding and destructive resentment. But there is nothing at all to be gained by spending your life filling up a mental warehouse with those painful resentments.
Choose instead to quickly forgive, and to move forward, beyond the pain and into a world filled with positive possibilities. Don't waste your life on resentment when there is so very much beauty, life and love to experience.
- Ralph Marston